# 1959 Cleveland Browns season

The 1959 Cleveland Browns season marked the team's tenth year in the National Football League (NFL) and 14th season overall.
Future Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown rushed for 1,329 yards, leading the league for the third straight year, and 14 touchdowns. Quarterback Milt Plum, who was drafted by the Browns in the 1957 draft, made his mark at the position. The Browns had been looking for a replacement for Otto Graham ever since the Hall of Famer retired—for the second time—following the 1955 season. They finally found him when Plum, a second-round draft pick in 1957, threw for 14 touchdowns with just six interceptions. However, the Browns would finish just 7–5 in 1959, the second in what would turn out to be a string of six straight seasons in which the Browns had decent to very good teams without qualifying for the postseason. The 7–5 record was also the second worst record since head coach Paul Brown's tenure with the team.

## Preseason

| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | August 11 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 20–34 | 0–1 | Forbes Field | 27,432 |
| 2 | August 22 | vs. Detroit Lions | L 3–9 | 0–2 | Rubber Bowl (Akron, Ohio) | 22,654 |
| 3 | August 30 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 14–17 | 0–3 | Kezar Stadium | 24,737 |
| 4 | September 5 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 27–24 | 1–3 | LA Memorial Coliseum | 55,883 |
| 5 | September 13 | at Detroit Lions | L 28–31 | 1–4 | Briggs Stadium | 33,435 |
| 6 | September 19 | Chicago Bears | W 33–31 | 2–4 | Cleveland Stadium | 25,316 |
| Note: September 19: Night game. ||||||||

## Regular season

In 1959 the Browns offered seats at four price levels. Reserved seats were available at $4.50, $3.50, and $2.50, depending on location, and general admission seats were available for a league-low price of $1.50. Reserve season tickets for the six game home slate cost $27, $21, and $15, respectively.
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
| 1 | September 26 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 7–17 | 0–1 | Forbes Field | 33,844 | Recap |
| 2 | October 4 | at Chicago Cardinals | W 34–7 | 1–1 | Soldier Field | 19,935 | Recap |
| 3 | October 11 | New York Giants | L 6–10 | 1–2 | Cleveland Stadium | 65,534 | Recap |
| 4 | October 18 | Chicago Cardinals | W 17–7 | 2–2 | Cleveland Stadium | 46,422 | Recap |
| 5 | October 25 | Washington Redskins | W 34–7 | 3–2 | Cleveland Stadium | 42,732 | Recap |
| 6 | November 1 | at Baltimore Colts | W 38–31 | 4–2 | Memorial Stadium | 57,557 | Recap |
| 7 | November 8 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 28–7 | 5–2 | Cleveland Stadium | 58,275 | Recap |
| 8 | November 15 | at Washington Redskins | W 31–17 | 6–2 | Griffith Stadium | 32,266 | Recap |
| 9 | November 22 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 20–21 | 6–3 | Cleveland Stadium | 68,563 | Recap |
| 10 | November 29 | San Francisco 49ers | L 20–21 | 6–4 | Cleveland Stadium | 56,854 | Recap |
| 11 | December 6 | at New York Giants | L 7–48 | 6–5 | Yankee Stadium | 68,436 | Recap |
| 12 | December 13 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 28–21 | 7–5 | Franklin Field | 45,952 | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Saturday night game: Sept. 26. |||||||||

## Standings

NFL Eastern Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| New York Giants | 10 | 2 | 0 | .833 | 8–2 | 284 | 170 | W4 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 268 | 278 | L1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 270 | 214 | W1 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 5 | 1 | .545 | 6–4 | 257 | 216 | W1 |
| Washington Redskins | 3 | 9 | 0 | .250 | 2–8 | 185 | 350 | L5 |
| Chicago Cardinals | 2 | 10 | 0 | .167 | 2–8 | 234 | 324 | L6 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Western Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Baltimore Colts | 9 | 3 | 0 | .750 | 9–1 | 374 | 251 | W5 |
| Chicago Bears | 8 | 4 | 0 | .667 | 6–4 | 252 | 196 | W7 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 5–5 | 255 | 237 | L2 |
| Green Bay Packers | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 248 | 246 | W4 |
| Detroit Lions | 3 | 8 | 1 | .273 | 2–8 | 203 | 275 | L1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 2 | 10 | 0 | .167 | 2–8 | 242 | 315 | L8 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.